Every Bit of Her
by Avari20
Summary: Nuada noticed the change in his sister's heart immediately. Now on the way to claim the Golden Army, he confronts Nuala...and his own feelings. Rated M for Mature Themes


_Disclaimer: I do not own Hellboy or any of the characters within._

**Every Bit of Her**

She had _feelings_ for the creature. He could feel it.

His hand on her arm tightened as he pulled her along behind him. He knew it ached to the point of pain—his own limb stung—but she made not a sound. His lips thinned. His nostrils flared as the resentment in his breast grew with each step. Was she silent in hopes that his anger would lessen?

Bitter gall burned in his throat, at odds with the warm balm that had settled over his chest. No, it resided in _her_ chest. He merely felt the ghost of it. It neither belonged nor was directed at him. He yanked on the delicate arm in his iron grip. She stumbled, a gasp escaping her soft lips.

He had felt that tender flesh himself once; a stolen moment when forbidden longing had overwhelmed his control. A bolt of pain lanced him. In the grand scope of their existence it had amounted to nothing. A simple tracing, his fingertips barely gliding over her mouth. He, the great prince, had not dared to even kiss her.

But his hand had shook. The minute contours, the impossibly downy skin, and the absolute satisfaction he had received in the caress were forever carved into his memory. He had touched her the way a man touched the woman he wanted, and he had gloried in it.

The encounter had both delighted and terrified him, childish emotions he had thought himself beyond. He had thrilled because the moment had gratified a part of him even the most debauched pleasures had failed to quench. Yet as he had embraced the elation that filled him he had dreaded it: the craving, while temporarily subsided, would return. He had known it would weaken him more than ever before. He had given into a dark temptation. Like all other temptations it would get stronger with each indulgence. He would long for another moment. He would yearn for that single touch and still more, until finally he would want it all. He would want every bit of her.

He would need every bit of her.

It was a dangerous obsession. He could not afford to be weak. They shared a life that he must protect. He wondered at times if their bond was what made her precious to him. Had they been as any other siblings, would he have felt this way? His great love for his father had not saved the king from his son's ambitions. Would it have saved his sister? Without the fear of harming himself as he harmed her, would he have killed her for his goal?

A new memory rose. A death sentence newly crowning his head, he had set aside his connection to his father and picked up the sword that would ultimately kill him. It had been a decision made in an instant. The pain it caused him was overwhelmed by the necessity of the act.. Each arc of the sword brought him closer to his objective. Grim pleasure had begun to settle over him and he had lost himself in the chance to unleash his wrath.

And then the fist had connected with his nose. A fortuitous hit. He might not have noticed it but for the instantaneous certainty that had blossomed. A glance had confirmed it—his blood was her blood. His pain was her pain.

Icy fear for her had taken pleasure's place. He had been too careless, too rash! His heart had thudded painfully. He had taken too much time in pandering to his frustration and she had paid the price. New determination hardened in him. _He would end this now_, he had resolved, _before his sport cost them both their lives. _

Now, as they halted before the giant whose body housed the entrance to his ultimate goal, he turned to look at her. Her eyes flickered from the stone. Wide and frightened, they met and held his stare.

He had not chosen to end the fight because of fear for his own life. He would not have entered the chamber if he had not been willing to sacrifice his own existence...but he had not been willing to sacrifice hers.

His eyes narrowed. She had cared enough for that creature in her sanctuary to warn him against fighting her sibling. He had known something had changed profoundly the instant she had seen the amphibian. New feelings had sparked to bright life. Her heart had beat like a wild bird against her chest when he, her twin, found her; it had fluttered when the creature had come.

Fluttered.

His lungs expanded and contracted in rapid succession. His legendary cool was cracking. For centuries he had wanted her heart. In the space of one day she had given it away to someone else.

Her lips parted at the rage no doubt slicing through her. She instinctively balked at his hold. Beautiful little fool. She had learned long ago no amount of struggling would free her from his grip. It would only hurt worse if she tried.

His other hand flew to her shoulder and he squeezed, silently warning her to cease. Their proximity changed with the movement. He looked at her. They were close, sharing the same breath. He inhaled her scent. In centuries it had never changed. It had only grown fuller as time passed. The magnetic pull that snared him whenever she was close overtook his limbs. The anger in his expression dulled. It was difficult to stay angry with her. It always had been. He swayed closer. There was something about her skin, her hair...

She turned her face away.

He stilled. "Why?" he ground out. He felt as though he were strangling on the words.

She kept her eyes on the horizon. She knew what he was really asking. "He is a good man," she replied quietly.

He bit back his retort. Denying that creature was a man was beneath him. They were none of them men. He would not stoop to base measures. "And I am not good." It was not a question.

"You are my brother. That will not change no matter what you become." He thought he saw the faint sheen of tears. "Or what you do," she added in a whisper.

Was she thinking of _him_? Or the death of their father and the role he himself had played?

He pushed away the thought, shaking his head."We can never separate." Even while in his exile he had known that. His eyes traced the curve of her presented cheek. Of its own accord his hand lifted. His thumb gently brushed over the bone beneath her skin, the first bit of contact bringing about that familiar jolt. "Where one goes so does the other." His voice turned low and gravelly. His expression drifted from anger to a mixture of pity and something...painful. "These feelings you harbor are doomed to tragedy. You and I belong together. There is no room for him. Do you understand that?"

He implored her to realize this. He wanted her to excise these emotions from her being. He wanted no other to come between them. Was this begging, he wondered? Had he been reduced to pleading for a place that should have belonged to him alone?

Why? Why did she do this to them? In blurry movements he released her arms to cup her face, forcibly turning it to his. His fingers buried themselves in her hair of their own accord. Their noses were barely two inches apart. His gaze bored into hers, all trace of tender emotions gone. "Do you?" he demanded harshly.

Her expression changed, unexpected stubbornness flitting to the fore. "I understand that I must join you on the course you have chosen." Her courage seemed to flail, then righted itself. "But my heart goes where it wishes."

He absorbed that. Silence stretched between them. The air was fraught with tension. She knew what she had said would incense him. It was clear from the way she watched him, waiting for the quiet explosion. His hands tangled deeper in the blonde strands of her hair. Knowing him as she did, she had still uttered the words. Was the creature that important? How had he managed to wriggle his way between them in so short a time?

His eyes fell to her lips. The part of her that had been his torment for hundreds of years. "Yes," he said with resignation. "My life is your life." He bent his head to hers, tilting her chin up. She read his intent and balked, grabbing his hands to drag them away. Her strength was no match for his. He ignored her struggles. He would not be denied today. He should have done it long ago. He should have captured that fragile heart and made it his. He should have locked it tight in a cage of his own making, far away from anyone else who might want her.

Instead he had left it unguarded, stymied by tradition, and it had been taken by someone else. Fool, he cursed himself. Thank the gods there was still time. The bond between her and that creature was still new and easily broken. It _would_ be broken and he would keep her by his side where she belonged. In the new world that he created there would be no one to stop him.

"My life is your life," he repeated. "And yours is mine."

He fit his mouth over hers. The delicious taste forbidden to him flowed across his skin at long last. It blocked out the feel of her nails digging into his hands and her stifled protest. He wrapped his arms around her body until it was flush with his, squeezing the resistance from her limbs. One day she would hold onto him as tightly, he promised himself fervently. He would wait for that day.

When all was said and done, she would be his alone, every bit of her.

The End

**A/N-This is my first Hellboy fanfiction, and therefore first Nuada/Nuala pairing. I hope you enjoyed reading it despite my inexperience and lack of a beta, and are kind enough to leave a review!**

**Regards,**

**Ava**


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